"Apparitions" Time: Twenty-five cycles after Fractures

Disclaimer: I didn't create Farscape, didn't create the characters and don't make a plug nickel off of it.

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Part Eleven: What My Blue Eyes Will Believe

"We'll fight, not out of spite For someone must stand up for what's right Cause where there's a man who has no voice There ours shall go singing" - Jewel, "Hands"

One of these days, I'm going to listen to my own instincts and the instincts of the people around me.

But don't count on it happening in my lifetime.

If I had been paying attention, if I had at least asked a few questions, things might have gone a little differently, and a lot of pain and trouble would have been avoided. But no, I took things at face value and that only made things worse.

One day I'll learn.

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Mom and Dad were both thrilled to be off Acquara and back on Moya, and even happier to see Pilot. (I don't think I'll ever forget the sight of Mom and Dad up on Pilot's console, his four arms holding them close in a heartfelt embrace.) Too bad it didn't last very long. To say Mom was less than thrilled to be in the vicinity of Furlow again was an understatement, and both she and Dad were staring at Jack with a mixture of anger and confusion.

Did I notice this? No, of course not. I was still riding a wave of joy at having them back again.

After introducing Tashina and Lhatan, Mattis and I walked Mom and Dad to the room they had used when they were on Moya before. Mattis seemed to be a little more relaxed, but I could tell there was something on his mind.

"Pilot," he said as we rounded a corner, "does Moya have any idea how the Peacekeepers found us?"

"Moya and I have been reviewing our recent sensor logs to determine that, Mattis. So far, I have found nothing out of the ordinary. I will continue to research."

"Good, Pilot. I hope it's not another Peacekeeper innovation we have to worry about. When I was still with them, there was still no way of tracking a Leviathan once it starbursts."

"That would certainly make keeping a low profile a little difficult," Dad said. He seemed to be watching Mattis, but I couldn't tell if anything was wrong. "So, what have you been doing for ten cycles?"

I shrugged. "Not a lot, really. Just tried to stay out of trouble, but you know how life is here on Moya. Something about Leviathans attracts trouble. And there have been a few times that I've found it necessary to step in and lend a hand to some people who needed it. Or, at least, I felt they needed it. We've made a few enemies over the cycles, but we've helped a lot of people, too."

"Well, the best time to help someone is when they needed, even if they don't know it." Dad peeked through the lattice bars on the door, nothing that two sets of doors were locked. "Why are these doors locked?"

"One set of doors is for your quarters, the other set is.was Rygel's. I wanted to make sure no one disturbed them."

Mom stared at the door to Rygel's quarters and sighed. "I can't believe Rygel's dead. All the times I wanted the little slug." Her eyes dropped to the deck and Dad slipped an arm around her shoulder.

I glanced at Mattis then gestured at the other set of locked doors. "Well, let's get you settled in again, then we'll get something to eat."

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"I'm surprised you got anything out of Furlow," Mom said as we walked into the Central Chamber. "I didn't think she'd say anything unless money was involved."

"Really? I found Furlow to be very reasonable." A wicked smile crossed Mattis's face. "As soon as I threatened to space her, she started talking."

Mom nodded, apparently approving of his handling of the situation. "You're not like any Tech I've ever met."

Mattis went to the cabinets along one wall of the chamber. "Well, I'm not, really. I volunteered for more practical combat training than the average Tech receives. I felt it would come in handy if I should ever find myself in a bad situation. It certainly has been useful in my time here on Moya." He took out a tray of food cubes and joined us at the table.

Chiana and Stark walked in as we started eating. Jack was close behind them. Mom watched them, suspicion in her eyes. "So, Jack, care to explain how you survived being shot?"

Jack's face went blank for a microt, as if he was surprised by the question. "I didn't, really. I was caught by surprise. It took some time for the wounds to heal."

"Are the Ancients still paranoid about wormhole tech," Dad asked, his voice nearly monotone.

"They have to be, John. As you know, the potential of wormhole technology is too great to leave in the wrong hands."

Dad nodded slowly. "Same old story." His eyes dated to me then returned to Jack. "When you ran into Furlow and the Pathfinder, did you see any Tavloids."

"Tavleks," Mom corrected.

"Whatever. Did you run into any Tavleks on Bia'thera? Aeryn said they were working with Furlow back on Dam-Ba-Da."

I was about to ask who the Tavleks were, but Mom tapped me on the knee. I looked at her out of the corner of my eye, then glanced at Mattis. He was frowning, but remained silent.

Jack seemed to think before he answered. "No, I didn't see any Tavleks, but I was concerned about Vanessa. Did you see any Tavleks, Mattis?"

"No, no Tavleks." Mattis's voice was cold. (Apparently, he's more observant than I am.)

"That's good," Dad said. "Those gauntlet weapons of theirs are bad news. You're working on the phase stabilizer?"

"Yes. I should have it working again in a few arns. It wasn't as damaged as the rest of your module. Once it's repaired and reinstalled, I'd like to test it."

"I don't think that will be a problem, Jack." Mom chewed on a food cube and kept a neutral expression on her face.

Jack nodded in approval. "Good. I could use your help finishing the work, John."

"Let me finish eating then I'll be down." Jack nodded again and left the chamber.

"Well, that was informative," Mom said in a voice that was as cold as ice.

Dad looked grim. "Yeah, wasn't it." He looked at Mattis and me.

I frowned. "Okay, what did I just miss?"

"Don't worry about it. I should have brought it to your attention sooner." Mattis tapped his comm. "Tashina?"

"Yes, Mattis?"

"Get Lhatan and come to the Central Chamber. We have problems."

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I stood by the module for a microt, watching Jack work. It took a little while, but I managed to get over feeling like an idiot for missing something Mom and Dad realized almost immediately, and Mattis suspected for a while. (It's times like this that I wished I were a little less trusting.)

"So, Jack, what exactly does this thing do?"

He didn't look up from his work. "It opens wormholes and allows safe passage through them. You know that."

"Do I? How would you know? I never told you what I did or didn't know about wormhole tech."

Jack glanced up quickly but didn't stop working. "It was a natural assumption. Since your father was conducting his own research, I thought he would have trained you in the technology."

I stepped closer. "I'm twenty-three cycles old, Jack. I told you Mom and Dad disappeared ten cycles ago. Don't you think that at the age of thirteen cycles, I was a bit young to be trained in such dangerous technology."

Now Jack stopped working and looked at little annoyed. "Perhaps you're right."

My hand started drifting toward my pulse pistol. "What's the difference between a phase stabilizer and a displacement engine?"

"There's no difference. A displacement engine and a phase stabilizer are the same."

"Just what we thought you'd say." I drew my pistol. "Did you hear that, Dad?"

"I got it, Vanessa." Mom, Dad and Mattis came into the maintenance bay through the door along the far wall, while Chiana and Tashina came up behind me. They all had weapons drawn.

Jack looked at them then crossed his arms. "What's the meaning of this?"

"The meaning, Jack or whoever the frell you are, is that whatever game you're playing is over." Dad walked up to Jack and waved him away from the phase stabilizer. "So, who are you? I assume you're an Ancient."

Jack looked at the stabilizer and shrugged. "Well, this lasted longer than I believed it would. How did you know?"

"We didn't fight Tavleks on Dam-Ba-Da," Mom said. "It was Charrids working for the Scarrans."

"And I've been suspicious of you since you first showed up," Mattis added. "I was wondering how the Peacekeepers knew not only that we were leaving, but where we were going. Would it be safe to assume your mental abilities are somewhat stronger than you told us?"

Dad stepped around the workbench until he was at my side. "So, what are you doing here? The Ancients decided to become players in the galaxy?"

Jack laughed. It was short and humorless. "No. The Ancients are still content to remain in hiding in their little corner of the universe. They're still as paranoid about their secrets as they ever were. I, on the other hand, believe that advanced technology is wasted unless it's used."

"So you came out to help whoever was the farthest along in their research? You're going to help the Peacekeepers build the weapons we kept them from building twenty-five cycles ago." Mom shook her head. "What about the Pathfinder? When we encountered them before, they were more concerned we research."

Jack sighed. "True. They're a race of researchers, who, for the most part, want knowledge but don't seem too inclined to use it for anything but transportation. I did find a few sympathetic souls who are also helping the Peacekeepers. Together we'll give them the weapons they want."

"And how do you fit in? What do you get out of all this?"

The smile that crossed Jack's face was cold. "Let's just say that every leader needs a strong military."

"And that strong leader would be you?" Dad looked unimpressed. "Don't you know that with great power comes great responsibility?"

I leaned close to him. "Very deep, Dad."

"Thanks. Spiderman." Dad lowered his pistol. "I say lock him up until we figure out what to do with him."

Mattis nodded. "Agreed. Jack, if you'll kindly keep your hands in sight. Tashina and I will show you to a comfortable cell." Jack seemed amused as he started out of the maintenance bay.

I'm still not sure what happened, but the deck suddenly heaved. As a nauseating shudder ran through Moya, Pilot screamed, "We're coming out of starburst! The system has failed! Stand by!"

After what seemed like a microt long eternity, Moya finally settled down. I looked around quickly, making sure everyone was all right. "Pilot, what's Moya's status?"

"Moya is unharmed, but starburst is unavailable."

"How long until."

"Where's Jack?"

In the doorway, Mattis and Tashina were getting to their feet. Jack was nowhere to be seen. "He must have scrambled when starburst failed. Almost as if he expected it."

"But how," Mom asked as we ran from the bay. "Could he have sabotaged Moya?"

Tashina shook his head. "While you were all down on the planet, I was monitoring in Command and Lhatan was in his lab. Jack could have easily done it then. I should have kept him with me."

"We can hand out blame later. Now we have to find him." I slapped my comm. "Stark, Lhatan, watch out for Jack! He's working with the Peacekeepers!"

We split up to cover more ground. I went down one tier and began checking chamber after chamber. I was beginning to become more and more concerned; Moya's so big that, even with the eight of us searching, it would still take time to search for Jack. The longer it took, the more time he had to escape or do something else to Moya.

After a few microts, I stopped in the middle of an intersection and looked around. If I were in Jack's place, where would I go?

A microt later, the answer came to me. As I started running, I hit my comm. "I know where he's going! He's heading for the starburst chamber!"

It took longer than I wanted to get to the lowest tier, to the chamber beneath the neurocluster. The door to the isolated chamber was open and I could see Jack frelling with an open panel. I drew my pistol as I ran into the chamber. "Jack! Step away from the panel! Do it now!"

I stepped around the focusing assembly, my pistol never wavering. Jack appeared unconcerned. He waved a hand around the chamber. "You know what this chamber is, don't you?"

"Of course. This is where the energy for starburst first coalesces. Being in here can be terminal." I glanced at the open panel and frowned.

He sighed. "Vanessa, think about it. Wormhole technology has many uses beyond simple weapons and transportation. The person who controls it would rule this part of the galaxy."

"Not interested, Jack. You have me confused with Furlow."

Jack glanced at the panel. "Do you know what I'm doing?"

"At a guess, I'd say you're rigging it so that the energy for starburst will be channeled upward through the neurocluster. That'll kill Pilot for sure and probably destroy Moya. And, since the Ancients fall under the heading of god-like aliens, you'll probably just spirit yourself away before that happens. Close?"

"Very good. If you don't join me, what will you do with your life? Simply live from day to day, hoping to stay ahead of the enemies you've made, trying to find scrapes of happiness in simply existing?"

I laughed once. "Sounds so pointless when you put it that way. My life has more meaning than that."

"Meaning? Intruding into the lives of people who don't want your help? Why worry about those less fortunate than you?"

"If not us, then who? The Peacekeepers? The Scarrans? The Nebari? The Ancients? I doubt any of them would care about some out of the way farming colony that really has nothing to offer." I waved my free hand, trying to get Jack away from the panel. "Now step away."

Jack planted his hands on his hips. "Or else what? You'll shoot? You won't shoot me. There's too much your father in you."

I couldn't deny that; there WAS a lot of John Crichton in me. I lowered the pistol. "You're right about that, Jack. There is a lot of my dad in me." He looked satisfied and turned back to the panel.

"But." He turned back to me. ".there's just as much of my mother in me." I brought the pistol back up and squeezed the trigger twice. Jack looked shocked as the pulse blasts slammed into him.

I watched him drop to the deck. "Don't you ever threaten Moya."

There were footsteps behind me. "Vanessa!" It was Mattis, but I knew Mom and Dad were with him. They came up behind me as I holstered my pistol. "What was he up to?"

"He was going to rig the chamber to channel the starburst energy upward." I closed my eyes and turned. Mom and Dad were watching me, but I couldn't tell what they were thinking.

I started from the chamber. "I frelled up again. I wasn't paying attention and frelled up. I could have gotten everyone killed. And I wanted to protect Moya."

Once out of the chamber, I started walking faster. Dad was calling out to me, but I wasn't listening. I was too busy blaming myself for everything that's gone wrong.

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TO BE CONTINUED